My Cousin, Ricky
by DanMat6288
Summary: Ulrich gets a surprise visit from his American cousin, Ricky Affeber, who wants to know all about his cousin's life. But, when he unwittingly spills his feeling that Ulrich his hiding something to his forein exchange partner's parents, they decide to take
1. Ricky's Arrival

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!_

_It's about time I wrote something with this character. I had him for over a year! Anyway, here's "My Cousin, Ricky"!_

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 1: Ricky's Arrival**

Ulrich Stern stood outside the dorm building, yelling frantically into his mobile. "Yumi, come on! Can't we talk?"

In the Ishiyama bathroom, Yumi scowled and spat, "That's nothing to talk about. I'm fed up with your lying."

"But, I'm not lying! There's nothing going on between Sissi and me!"

"Oh, yeah, sure," she said sarcastically, then added, rather forcefully, "_Goodnight!_" and hung up.

"Yumi! Are you there? Yumi! Come on, let me explain! Yumi!" Ulrich couldn't believe it. He had an entire month of Sissi Delmas to deal with, and Yumi wouldn't even talk to him.

* * *

Clad in an Old Army American flag t-shirt, a small, 7-year-old boy trotted along the Paris airport. Little Patrick, or Ricky as he preferred to be called, was a little enthusiastic about this foreign exchange program that had him in France. A portion of his family lived in this country, so he already knew how to speak French. 

Next to him was Mrs. Jacob, the exchange program official that was getting him settled into France. Ricky wheeled, behind him, a large suitcase, while Mrs. Jacob wheeled an even bigger one. Pretty soon, both spotted a man that held up a sign reading "AFFEBER".

Mrs. Jacob motioned her to follow and they approached the man with the sign. "Hello, you must be Mr. Davis," she said in fluent French.

The man nodded. "You're from Cosmo & Jones Student Foreign Exchange, right?" he asked. Mrs. Jacob nodded and Mr. Davis leaned over to look into the eyes of the 7-year-old. "And, that must make you Ricky."

"Hello, Exchange Daddy," he said with a rather silly grin.

"How about we take little Ricky over to your house so I can discuss the terms with you and your wife?" suggested Mrs. Jacob, in her business tone.

"Fine by me," said Mr. Davis before asking Ricky, "would you like anything when we reach what will be your new home for the next few years?"

Thought for a moment, then said, "I'd like a nice piece of apple-flavored 3.14!"

It took a while for Mr. Davis to register the joke.

* * *

Today was just about like any other day at the Kadic boarding school. Three of the foursome, that we've come to know, were in Jeremie's room. One of them was... eh, less than enthusiastic, contrary to the little boy we met earlier. 

Jeremie Belpois sighed, not happy to see his friend in this mood, "Would it help if I apologized for all the trouble my actions caused?"

Ulrich sat on the bed and pressed his fingertips against his forehead. "It's not your fault, Jeremie," he said. "There was nothing you could have done to prevent my little deal with Sissi."

Odd Della-Robbia thought about this and said, "Well, you wouldn't have had to make that deal if Jeremie hadn't decided to send himself into Lyoko, even though he's the only one who can operate the scanners."

"_Thank you, Odd,_" Ulrich mumbled through gritted teeth.

"_What if I tried talking to Yumi?_" a girl's voice piped up, from the speakers of Jeremie's computer.

Everyone's attention was now on the pink-haired virtual girl on the screen.

"Well, gee, Aelita, think you could?" Jeremie asked, pondering this idea.

She smiled and nodded. "You know very well I can tap into electronic signals, just as X.A.N.A. can... including telephone signals. I could call Yumi, on her mobile, under my own electronic ID. Surely she'll talk to me."

"Hmm... sounds like a good idea," concluded Jeremie. "What do you say, Ulrich?"

Ulrich sighed, thought about this, then allowed himself to smile, slightly, and say, "OK, Aelita. You can give it a shot."

As Aelita logged off, Ulrich thought to himself, hoping that she would be able to get through to Yumi. Odd chose this moment to say, "I still can't believe that down payment you gave Sissi."

Ulrich narrowed his eyes and mumbled, "Odd, do you enjoy having a mouth-full of teeth?"

_Please review, along with a guess from anyone who thinks they can recognize the scene at the beginning of this chapter._


	2. Hello, Cousin!

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!_

Yay (happy look because this stupid thing won't allow me to use carrots, backslashes, underlines, or brackets)You love me!

_Ricky: XP Hey, _I'm_ the one they all love!_

_(raspberry)_

_Ricky: (raspberry back)_

_Anyway, thank you all for liking my story. Congrats to Movie-Brat andkatfish xX for figuring out where the beginning scene came from. You each get a slice of one of Judy Neutron's famous pies. (hands both a slice each)_

_Judy: (in the background) Hugh, have you been sneaking pie before supper again?_

_(happy look, even though semicollins are allowed)Uh, heh, heh, heh... Anyway, reviews._

_FlipMyMood - thanks very MUCH!_

_Movie-Brat - Thanks. Enjoy your pie._

_katfish xX - Yeah, I liked that picture, too. I WANT AN ULRICH PLUSHIE! That, and a Jeremie plushie, Odd plushie, Yumi plushie, and Aelita plushie... maybe even a Jimmy Neutron plushie... and a Timmy Turn--_

_Ricky: (covers my mouth) You're scaring me._

_SamandMax0569 - XD Glad you liked the pun. I kind of thought it sounded a little corny, actually._

_Ricky: HEY!_

_I wrote it, kid._

_deadinside72 - OMG! NOT THE MUFFINS! ANYTHING BUT THE MUFFINS! Alright, I'll do it. Just don't break out the muffins!_

_YumiandUlrich4ever - Speak away._

_purplelover - Hey, you and Odd would really get along. All very good questions, which will be answered in this chapter. Lucky you!_

_This chapter will also feature someone else. Someone who happened to come along almost is if the writers knew I was creating Ricky. You'll see who._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 2: Hello, Cousin!**

Mrs. Davis set a plate, topped with a slice of apple pie, down for the 6-year-old boy, before sitting down beside him to say, "So, I hear you're quite the child prodigy."

Ricky took a bite of his pie with a look of peppy content, then nodded. "I really got interested in reading when I was 2 and the computer when I was 3," he mumbled through a full mouth. "I'd probably be, like, in college, or something, but my teachers mentioned something called 'maturity' as to why I'm still in a normal school year. I try my best not to outshine my fellow classmates," he added.

Mr. Davis thought for a moment, then asked, "So... what are you excited about, most, in coming to France?"

"_What am I most excited about?_" he cried with a huge grin on his face. "About half my family is in France, including my favorite cousin!" He glanced down and saw that he'd squashed his hand into his pie, then shrugged and began to lick the apple filling off his fingers. "He's in a boarding school called Kadic Academy," he added between licks.

"Kadic, huh? That's not far from the school _you'll_ be going to for the next year or so."

"I know," he said with a matter-of-fact tone and a big grin.

* * *

The mood was tense at the Ishiyama dinner table. At the four sides of the table sat Mr. and Mrs. Ishiyama, Yumi, and little 8-year-old Hiroki. 

"Yumi, is everything alright?" asked her mother, watching her absent-mindedly poking at her food with her chop sticks.

"Um, I'm fine," she lied under her breath.

It only took a second for Hiroki to come up with his very much expected conclusion: "It's your _boyfriend_, Ulrich, isn't it?" he teased. "_Oh, Ulrich, I love you!_"

That tore it. Yumi slammed her chopsticks down on her plate and stormed up to her room. Her little brother sniggered until he saw their mother's warning look.

* * *

Flopping back-down on her bed, Yumi let out a big sigh. A moment later, her phone began to ring. She picked it up and was surprised to see Aelita's name listed. She pressed the activation button and held it up to her ear. "Aelita?" 

"Hello, Yumi," spoke the soft, kind voice of the virtual girl. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, OK," she said. "Jeremie's safe and back on Earth, and that's what really matters."

"That's true," Aelita replied. "How's everyone else? Odd? Ulrich?"

"Odd's doing OK, as usual," she added the last part with a smile. "Ulrich... I'd rather not talk about that."

"Why not? Is something the matter?"

Yumi sighed. "Nothing. It's just... well, when I got stuck in the principal's office, Ulrich got me out by making a deal with Sissi to go out with her for a month. And then, I hear about this down payment, and I... I'm not sure if Ulrich really..."

"Oh, Yumi, think about it," said Aelita. "If Ulrich hadn't done what he did, we could've lost Jeremie for good. Just give him a chance. I know he cares about you."

Yumi took in her friend's words. "But... how would you...?"

"Just trust me. I can feel it."

* * *

"Math class wasn't so bad," said Odd. 

"Only because she gave us a free period," Ulrich reminded him. It was the end of school, the next day, and the three boys were in Odd and Ulrich's dorm room.

That's when Jeremie piped in, saying, "Well, I found that pop quiz in history class quite refreshing."

Odd raised an eyebrow, smirking. "You would, Einstein."

At that moment, a knock came at the door and Yumi entered. "Hi, guys," she said.

"Hey, Yumi. How'd the Italian test go?" asked Odd.

Yumi raised her hand and said, "Actually, I'd rather not think about that right now." She glanced over at Ulrich. "Oh, um, hey, Ulrich."

"_Hello, Yumi,_" he mumbled awkwardly.

She kneeled down and looked in his eyes. "OK, Ulrich. I'm willing to give you another chance. Honestly tell me: is there anything going on between you and Sissi?"

"No, Yumi, honest. I just..." he sighed. "I just got desperate. If I couldn't get Sissi to cooperate, we could've lost Jeremie forever, and she wanted 2 months _minimum_ out of me, so I gave her one month and..." He couldn't go on.

"...a down payment: a kiss." Yumi finished.

Ulrich closed his eyes and let his head hang low. "I'm sorry."

Yumi sat down next to him. "Ulrich, I..."

Another knock came.

"Who's there?" asked Ulrich.

_"Orange!"_ piped a familiar, high-pitched voice from the other side of the door.

"Orange who?" asked Odd.

_"Orange ya' glad I came all the way from the U.S. to see you?"_

Ulrich sighed--though close inspection revealed he was trying to hide a smile--and went to the door. "I almost forgot he was coming."

As soon as he opened the door, the grinning 6-year-old boy greeted, "Hello, Cousin!"

_"Cousin?"_ asked a couple of voices behind Ulrich.

"Well, 'Cousin', I believe a few introductions are in order," said Odd.

_Aaaaand... Ricky Affeber meets the gang. When Hiroki was introduced, I was all, "Hey! _I_ wanted to introduce the cute, hyper, little relative pushing the UlrichxYumi relationship!" And then, a brilliant idea came to mind. Why not--? (Ricky covers my mouth again and winks at me) Oh, right. (sneaky grin) Why tell you know, when I can leave you hanging for the answer in the next chapter? Adios! Ciao! Hasta lavista! Happy trails, y'all! Later, dudes!_

_Jeremie: Uh, yeah. We get the idea._


	3. New Friends

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!!!_

Greetings my loyal fans!

_Random Fan: YOU'RE LATE!_

_Hey, I have my reasons! Anyway, in repsonse to everyone who reviewed..._

_Japanime Girl - I shall update soon. Like, as soon as I finish writing author notes and get to the "story" section._

_deadinside72 - O.O; NOT THE MARSHMALLOWS! HERE'STHENEXTCHAPTER!_

_fictionfan911 - Thanks. I try my best._

_SamandMax0569 - I guess I could make him 7. I mainly wanted to make him around the same age as Ricky, mostly to make them in the same class. Although, I have heard that both 6- and 7-year-olds can be in first grade. I, in fact, as 7 when I was in first grade._

_katfish xX - MWAHAHAHAHA! BOW TO MY ALMIGHTY SKILLS OF WRITING INTERESTING THINGS!_

_Ricky: giggles You're weird!_

_I know._

_Princess-RainbowRose - Wait no more, cause here is..._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 3: New Friends**

Yes, it started out just like any other day at Kadic Academy... until a certain Ricky Affeber came to visit. Ulrich explained that his mother's sister's 6-year-old boy, from the United States, was there as a part of a foreign exchange program.

"But, I thought Mr. Delmas wasn't going to open an exchange program with America until _next_ year," Jeremie pointed out.

"Oh, I'm not going to Kadic," said Ricky. "I'm going to a public school nearby called Pasteur Elementary School; obviously named after Louis Pasteur, that guy from the 1800's who invented pasteurization to kill bacteria in foods."

Now, if you saw a 7-year-old boy reciting what a famous guy of the 1800's did, with every indication that he knew what he was talking about, what would you do? It sure stunned Ulrich's friends.

Ricky grinned and asked, "What? You've never seen a 7-year-old boy genius before?" He clearly enjoyed the awe his intellect caused people.

Ulrich smiled, in spite of himself, and told his cousin, "Woah, easy there, Ricky. Remember the woman you nearly gave a heart attack?" The little boy gave a sheepish, slight smile as Ulrich explained, "Uncle Eugene and Aunt Mary say that the doctor's don't know exactly _what_ happened. But, Ricky seemed to have some weird chemical disorder in his brain, a couple days after he was born, that--believe it or not--caused his brain to start developing a lot sooner and faster!

"We first started noticing the effects when he could read at the age of two! The disorder went away a couple of years later, but it had already done its work. My cousin is a genius."

Jeremie gaped and asked, "What are the odds?"

"8,367,286,904.15 to 1," blurted out Ricky. He shrugged and said, "I calculated the odds, once, for fun." He looked around at the awed kids and asked, "So, who are you guys?"

"Oh, I'm Jeremie," he said. "I'm a genius, too, but I'm pretty sure it has nothing to do with a brain disorder."

"Nice to meet you, Jerry!" grinned Ricky, extending his hand to shake.

"Not Jerry, _Jeremie_!" he corrected.

"Forget it," said Ulrich. "He likes giving people nicknames."

"I'm Odd," said guess who.

Ricky giggled and said, "Can't argue with that."

Odd shook his head and said, "No, my _name_ is Odd!"

"Tell me what it is and I'll decide that for myself!"

"He knows what you mean, Odd," Ulrich said, passing Ricky a stern look. "I told him about you guys at our last family reunion."

And then, Ricky turned his attention to the remaining person in the room, and his eyes and grin grew wide as he said, "And, that would make you..."

Ulrich buried his face in his hands. "_Oh-no..._"

"...**COUSIN'S GIRLFRIEND!**" Ricky squealed loudly.

"_Patrick..._" Ulrich grumbled. The little boy immediately shrank away. "He's usually never called by his real name," he explained to his friends. "That is, unless he's in trouble."

Yumi moaned, "Oh-no... not another Hiroki."

Ricky smiled. "Roki? Yeah! My new friend at school!"

* * *

**FLASHBACK:**

At Pasteur Elementary School, Ms. Curie was checking off names of students when she heard a knock at the door. "Come in," she said.

A little boy wearing a red t-shirt, with the American flag on it, walked into the room. "Hi, I'm Ricky Affeber," he said, handing Ms. Curie a slip of paper. "This is my foreign exchange partner's room, right?"

"Ah, why yes it is," Ms. Curie said with a smile, "You'll be sitting over there, Ricky, next to Hiroki Ishiyama."

_Ishiyama..._ The word stuck in his head as he walked to his seat. He stared at the black-haired boy as he sat down, and Hiroki noticed his gaze. "What?"

"Pay attention, students," came the voice of the teacher, meaning that Ricky would have to tell him later. "We're working more on adding multi-digit numbers."

When the worksheet came his way, he gave it one good look, leaned his head back, and yawned. Ms. Curie noticed this and came over, whispering to him, "_Just because you're a child prodigy doesn't mean you have to brag about it._"

The said child prodigy shrugged. "_I know. I try not to._"

"_There is a reason why you're still in grade school._"

Ricky thought about this for a moment, and said, "_Um, something about 'ma-tor-ity'... something like that._"

The teacher sighed and said, "_Finish this up and you'll have the rest of the time to yourself,_" then got up and went back to her desk.

Now, it was _Hiroki_ staring at _Ricky_. As if just to throw his earlier comment back, Ricky hid a smile (well, he failed to hide it, actually), and asked, "What?"

* * *

Now lunchtime, Ricky walked out of line with a tray full of cafeteria food: a scoop of macaroni and cheese, a roll and butter, chicken nuggets, and a carton of chocolate milk. He noticed Hiroki sitting at one of the tables, not really sitting with anybody, and went to eat with him. 

Hiroki looked up. "Oh, it's the child prodigy," he said, scooping up some of his mac and cheese. In mid-chew, he asked, "What's a 'prodigy'?"

Ricky smiled and said, "Oh, that means I'm really smart. You know, like a genius."

The Japanese boy smiled a little and said, "Oh, that's cool," before continuing to eat. "I see you love your country a lot."

Ricky grinned and replied, "What can I say? I'm a patriotic boy." He slurped on his milk as the same word echoed in his head: _Ishiyama_. When he couldn't take it any more, he asked, "Say, are you related to someone named Yumi?"

"Oh, you mean, my sister?" he asked. "Yeah, she used to go to this school, then she went to Kadic Academy with her _boyfriend_, Ulrich Stern... heh-heh... why do you ask?"

"Well, one of the best things about being in this country is my favorite cousin (he's my only cousin, but I love him all the same) who goes to Kadic, and he's none other than..."

Hiroki's eyes grew wide. "Ulrich... is your _cousin_? No, way!" he cried, grinning.

"I know," said Ricky, getting up in excitement. "I can't believe that Cousin's girlfriend is your sister!"

Hiroki got up in excitement as well. "And, I can't believe that my sister's boyfriend is your cousin!" He sat down, saying, "Man, pretty much everyone knows those two are supposed to be going out!"

As Ricky sat down, his smile faded as he asked, "So... why don't _they_ get it?"

Hiroki thought for a moment and said, "Well, we'll just have to _make_ them get it."

Ricky smiled and held up his milk carton. "Right. To my cousin and your sister!"

Hiroki held up his own milk carton. "To your cousin and my sister!"

And, with the tap of the two cartons, in toast, a new friendship was born.

* * *

**RETURN TO THE PRESENT, NOW**

"Hiroki... and Ricky... friends..." Yumi suddenly became light-headed and fainted on Ulrich's bed.

Ricky shrugged and asked, "Was it something I said?"


	4. Double Trouble

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!_

Greetings to all my adoring fans! XD (a tomato is thrown at me) Anyway...

_SamandMax0569 - Intellegence of a supercomputer + maturity of a 6-year-old pure chaos. Just ask Ulrich. XD And, Ricky and Roki as friends is certainly the end of _Yumi's_ world as she knows it._

_purplelover - Glad to be giggle-inducing._

_Mewberries - Thank you for your comments _and_ pictures. Well, I can tell you one thing: when you're smart enough to know how to do anything and immature enough to _try_ anything, things can get pretty crazy._

_lyokobattler - I have updated._

_625: Hey, genius, she said A.S.A.P., and you still took two or so weeks?_

_Shut it, or I dehydrate you in that. (points to the instant dehydrater)_

_Princess-RainbowRose - Hmm... what kind of Hiroki fics _have_ you seen around here?_

_Japanime Girl - Neither would I. XD_

_Samiria - Patience is a virtue, grasshopper._

_625: Look! Up in the sky! It's a hoagie! It's pastrami! No, it's Super Hyprocrite!_

_Ricky: (giggles) You're funny._

_625: (a la Elvis) Thank you. Thank you very much._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 4: Double Trouble**

"By the way, Roki, did you know that he collects model helicopters?" Ricky asked his new friend, later that day in the Ishiyama residence. They had been playing video games for a couple of hours, but grew bored and were now talking about his foreign exchange partner, Noah Davis.

Hiroki laughed and said, "Everyone in our class knows that! He even has a model of the CMM news chopper!"

"I know; I saw it," laughed Ricky, along with him. "From the sounds of it, Noey may be the nervous type, but he'll probably still kill me if I cause any harm to any of them."

"Ricky," Mrs. Ishiyama came into the room. "Mrs. Davis is here to pick you up."

"Oh, OK," he said getting up. "Thanks for letting me come over, Mrs. Ishy!" he said as he passed by her.

She smiled. "You're welcome, Ricky."

He waved and called, "Bye, Roki! Bye, Mrs. Ishy! Bye, Cousin's girlfriend!" With that, he sprinted out the door.

Yumi moaned and went upstairs to her room. It was bad enough when Hiroki bugged her about it, but when Ulrich's little cousin was introduced, it was double trouble. Her mother noticed this and went up to sit by her side. "Yumi dear, what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, Mom. It's just that..." she paused to collect herself. "Well, of all people to become friends..."

"Well, that's what happens when two people who have a common interest meet," her mother stated plainly. "They become friends."

"It would be fine with me, if _their_ common interest wasn't..."

Mrs. Ishiyama interrupted, reminding her, "Hiroki and Ricky's common interests are more than just their belief that you and that young boy, Ulrich, are to be together, you know. You'll just have to learn to ignore the things that they do that annoy you, and I'm sure everything will work out just fine."

Yumi thought about this and smiled up at her mother. "I'll try, Mom."

* * *

As Mrs. Davis drove Ricky back to his temporary home, he looked out around the town. He was never really in this part of the country before, and he was going to need to get to know it if he was going to be there for a couple of years. 

"So, how was your first day at your new school?" she asked.

"Oh, it was pretty good," he replied. "Kind of boring, but what do you expect when you put a genius in grade school? Ms. Curie told me I'm a genius in book smarts, but that's not enough to get me into much higher grades." He snapped his fingers. "Oh, and I made a new friend! Roki Ishy!"

"Hiroki Ishiyama?" Ricky nodded. "Noah never really took a liking to him."

"I don't see why," said Ricky. "Oh, and I got to see my cousin! And, I learned all about his friends, Odd and Jerry, and his girlfriend! Oh, and that annoying Lizzie, who keeps trying to steal my cousin from her. Oh, and did you know that Cousin's a pro in European football? We call that soccer in our country. I stink at it, but we all stink at something, right?"

"Is there anything else Ulrich and his friends do?"

Ricky thought for a moment. "Well, Odd likes making music videos, Jerry's a whiz at the computer, Cousin practices this one kind of martial arts, called Pencak Silat... I don't know, I think I may have missed something... or maybe he isn't telling me something... and I think it's something big..." Truth be told, Ricky, at this point, had no idea he was talking out loud anymore.

* * *

"Something big, he said?" asked Mr. Davis. 

"That right," she said. "I'm a little concerned, honey. From what I've heard about Ulrich Stern, he's a big mystery."

"You think he may be hiding something?"

"I don't know, but I do know that, as part of the foreign exchange agreement, we promised to take care of little Ricky as if he were our own. Which means, we'll probably have to take measures to be absolutely sure."

* * *

The next day, in the Forest Region of Lyoko, a tower at the end of a plateau turned red. Needless to say, X.A.N.A. was active.

* * *

At this time, Jeremie typed way at his keyboard. His objective: the usual mission of perfecting the key to materialization. Odd and Ulrich were with him. 

Sitting cross-legged and petting his dog, Kiwi, Odd asked Jeremie, "So, when Aelita comes to live with us, what are we going to do about giving her an Earth life?"

"I already have a list of websites to hack to give her things such as a birth certificate, social security number, etc., and we'll also need to give her a last name, birthplace, and family connections," explained Jeremie.

He thought for a moment, "I know! We can say she's my cousin!"

Ulrich smirked and said, "With all the solo missions you've been on with Aelita, you guys kind of _are_ like family."

Right after he managed to get that out, Jeremie input the last string of code. "OK, I'm ready to test it." With a strike of the enter key, the test program ran Jeremie's calculations.

Jeremie groaned. "Aw, man! I was sure I had it that time!"

Ulrich placed a hand on Jeremie's shoulder. "Don't worry yourself about it, Jeremie. You'll get it right some day," he told him.

"Yeah, well, in the meantime, it's Saturday," piped Odd. "And, that means, we get the rest of the day off!"

As the two left Jeremie's dorm room, Ulrich asked, "So, your date with Jeanne is today?"

"Yep," answered Odd.

"How many girls have you gone out with already?"

"Oh, a few," he answered in an innocent tone, before closing the door behind him.

When Ulrich and Odd were gone, Aelita appeared on the screen and said, "I'm sure you'll figure it out one day, Jeremie." He smiled at her positive words. "By the way, I didn't have time to tell you this yesterday, but Ricky was wrong about those odds. It's actually, 8,367,286,904.15_39_ to 1."

Jeremie chuckled. "If anyone would know, Aelita, it's you."

* * *

But, when the two boys were in the hallway, a woman approached them. "Ulrich Stern?" 

"Yes?" he asked in an unsure tone.

The woman extended her hand to shake. "Counselor Nancy Clark, or Miss Clark if you prefer. Or, you could just call me Nancy, if you want; I don't mind. Jim did tell me that, if I didn't find you in your room, you'd most likely be here."

"Er, that nice, Miss Clark," he mumbled in an uneasy tone, "but what do you want?"

"Oh, to talk to you and get to know you," she said in a pleasant tone.

"Hey, wanna get to know me?" asked the spiky, blonde haired boy. "The name's Odd. Odd Della Robbia."

"Isn't she a bit old for you?" asked Ulrich with a smirk.

"Ha, ha... very funny, Mr. Mystery," said a sarcastic Odd. "Me starting a pleasant conversation with a female doesn't always mean I'm flirting with her. Now, if you excuse me, Jeanne awaits." With that, he left.

Miss Clark chuckled. "Well, now that we have that settled... hmm-hmm... Odd seems like quite the charmer." Ulrich rolled his eyes, cracking a smile. "Now, let's talk about you."

They began to walk as Ulrich began to say, "Well, I'm a C student, I'm our football team's best player, there's this girl named Sissi who keeps stalking me, my other best friend, Jeremie, is pretty much a genius, which makes it hard to understand what he's saying, sometimes..."

"Anything regarding your personal life that we could discuss?"

Ulrich eyed her and asked, "Don't they call it a 'personal life' for a reason?"

"I'm a counselor, Ulrich," she reminded him. "I listen to young men and women's private lives all the time. It's my duty to keep what I learn confidential, if need be."

Ulrich glanced away. "Yeah? Well, maybe there are some things I shouldn't tell even you."

Miss Clark eyed Ulrich with concern. "Ulrich, you're going to have to cooperate with me. If you're going to act this way, I may have to monitor you more closely."

That was the last thing Ulrich needed.

_- Remember that this is Europe, and they call "soccer" "football"._

_Anyway, looks like we've got double trouble. Hey, that's great. Maybe that could be the name of the chapter!_

_Ricky: Actually, it already is._

_It is? Man, I'm good! XD_

_625: Oy vey._


	5. XANA's Attack

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!!!_

Before I continue, let me just say one thing: you_ try out for a musical, and then see what happens when your fanfic readers are demanding more, while you have evening after evening of rehersals, then the shows themselves. Oh, in case anyone's wondering, our production of "Beauty and the Beast" was loved by all._

you 

_purplelover - How will they deal with X.A.N.A., indeed..._

_SamandMax0569 - Thanks. Glad to know I have everyone in character._

_Odd: Yeah, the story is going pretty well (to random girl), huh?_

_Girl: I TOLD YOU NEVER TO SPEAK TO ME AGAIN!_

_Odd: Ohsorry!_

_Ahem, anyway..._

_deadinside72 - That would _really_ be trouble._

_katfish xX - (shrug) All I can say is, I'm far from an expert on foreign ways of communication._

_Lyokogal7503 - I had Ricky all thought out since longbefore they even started airing Season 2. And, after awhile, I figured they'd be the perfect friends. XD_

_Mewberries - Hope you're all vented out there. Anyway, that's a good suggestion, but... well, you'll see what they'll do..._

_lyokobattler - Just you wait, Henry Higgins... XD Sorry, couldn't resist._

_Rick73 - Ricky: XD_

_Kitty - (points to_ _the top of the page, cause he's not making the same statement over again) ... -.-_

_urichXyumi plus long night 9 months later i was born - ..; Woah... long name..._

_And, without further adu..._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 5: X.A.N.A.'s Attack**

"She's going to monitor you?" asked Odd, when the two were together in their dorm room. "You mean like, follow you around all day, keeping an eye on you?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," said an unhappy Ulrich. "This is bad, Odd. She could learn too much, snooping around like that. What if X.A.N.A. attacks and she finds out about him?"

"Then, you'll probably just have to stay out of the fight against X.A.N.A. until this whole thing blows over," Odd told him. "After all, it's not like she's monitoring me, Jeremie, and Yumi, too. How did you get into this mess, anyway?"

Ulrich sighed and said, "She said I seemed like someone who could 'benefit from her counseling skills'. Other than that, I have no idea."

* * *

In the empty science room, no one was there to notice the electrical outlet short out... or the black smoke that poured from it. Undetected, the smoke surrounded one of the nearby Bunsen burners and quickly seeped into it.

* * *

"What is a counselor, anyway, Jeremie?" asked Aelita. 

"It's someone who helps advise kids on their life problems, if they need the help," he explained. "Apparently, someone thought Ulrich needed the help due to the fact that he's always being Mr. Mystery."

"Well then, a counselor seeing to Ulrich would be a good thing, right?" she said.

Jeremie shook his head and said, "The problem is, at the level of supervision she's giving him, she could go as far as finding out about Lyoko and X.A.N.A. If she finds out about something as serious as the Super Calculator, she could tell the authorities, they'll shut it down, and you're history!"

But, ever faithful Aelita just gave him a reassuring look and said, "Don't worry; I'm sure you and the others will figure out a way out of it."

Jeremie blushed, Aelita smiled, but her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the very distant sound of a low growl and pumping. "Pulsations?" she asked herself, being overheard by Jeremie.

"What is it Aelita?" Is X.A.N.A. awake?" he asked, now alert.

"It would seem so; I sense pulsations, but I can't tell where they're coming from."

Hearing that, Jeremie launched the tower scanner and said, "We'll know in a few minutes."

* * *

As Ricky walked along the academy campus, he observed the different kids. He saw a lot of 13-15-year-olds hanging out, as well as a couple of 10-year-olds playing around the edge of the forest. However, what he _should've_ been observing was were he was going--for he bumped into a 13-year-old girl. 

"Hey, watch where you're going!" she snapped.

"Sorry," he said with a smile. "Hi, I'm Ricky! My cousin, Ulrich, goes to this school!"

"Oh, Ulrich?" asked the girl. "Yes, of course. I know him very well?"

"Really?"

"Yes, I'm his girlfriend," she said, striking a rather vain pose.

Ricky frowned and shook his head. "Cousin's girlfriend? No, I already met Yumi, and you're not her."

The girl scowled. "No, not _that_ tomboy! I'm Sissi!"

The little boy's eyes lit up. "Oh... Lizzie! Cousin's _wannabe_ girlfriend!"

Sissi's eyes lit up, too... with flames. "WHAT? Oh, you're going to pay for the comment, you little brat!"

* * *

"Bingo!" said Jeremie, as the scanner picked up the activated tower. "X.A.N.A. is definitely on the offensive. The activated tower is in the Forest Region." 

"I'm off," said Aelita.

Jeremie nodded. "Right. I'll pick up Odd and Yumi, and we'll meet you at the factory. In Ulrich's current situation, it's probably best that he sits this one out."

* * *

Ulrich sat in the library with Miss Clark next to him. "So, where are your friends right now, Ulrich?" she asked. "Surely you'd have activities you kids do together." 

"They have their own lives," said Ulrich. "I'm not the type who would snoop on what they do."

The door suddenly swung open and a little boy scampered in followed by an enraged teenaged girl. "Run, run, run as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm Ricky, the hyper, little man!"

Ulrich groaned. "What happened?" he asked.

Sissi chased the boy around the table and shouted between laps, "Ulrich dear... you cousin... is the most... annoying... little pest... in the history... of annoying... little pests!"

_"What's all this ruckus?"_

The chase suddenly stopped when Jim Morales appeared in the room. "Well?" he asked, then spotted Ricky. "Who's this."

Ricky stepped up to Jim with a somewhat hyper grin on his face. "Hi, I'm Ricky; I'm Ulrich's cousin!"

"He's a relative from the United States, taking part in a school program," Ulrich hastily explained.

Jim grunted softly, considering this. "Well, he's going to have to learn to behave if he's going to be tagging around the campus." He pointed to Ulrich and said, "As his older cousin, he's _your_ responsibility."

* * *

"Oh, and then Ricky taught me this cool trick! Did you know that when you mix baking soda and vinegar together, it bubbles up and creates a lot of gas?" said Hiroki. He'd been having a lot of fun, since he and his new friend got together, but was getting on Yumi's nerves. 

She sighed and responded in a flat tone, "Yes, Hiroki. I knew that."

At that moment, she felt her phone vibrate. A quick look at a text message revealed this:

**S.O.S**

**XANA**

**J.**

"Um, listen, how about I get some extra baking soda and vinegar at the store, so we can try it out?" lied Yumi. "Mom and Dad wouldn't want us using what we already have."

Her little brother stared at her for a moment, as if suspecting the fib, then smiled and said, "OK."

"Great!" she said, sprinting out the door. "See you later!"

* * *

Once the Bunsen burner, in the empty science lab, gathered enough energy, it burst to life, with long strings of flame stretching into the air. Moments later, it toppled over, setting the nearby desk on fire... 

_The heat is on..._

_Cogsworth: Oh, spare me the stupid puns!_

_625: What's with the talking clock?_

_Cogsworth: And, what are _you_ supposed to be?_

_Ricky: Funny. XD_

_625: Thank you. I'll be here all week!_


	6. To Lyoko The Trap

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!_

Welcome back, folks. We've got quite a match going on, today. Right, Bob?

_Bob: Right, Dan. So far, it's X.A.N.A. 1, Lyoko gang zilch._

_625: Can we get on with the story, already?_

_Yes, yes, of course, Experiment 625, aka Sandwich Boy, the sandwich-loving alien experiment off of _Lilo & Stitch

_625: (stares at me, and then checks my reviews) Alright, who asked about me?_

_Huh? (pulls him away) No one. Anyway..._

_katfish xX - (checks her "favorite quotes", and then sighs) Um, I mean, I'm glad you like the story._

_purplelover - That's called a cliffhanger, lover of purple. XD Hate 'em when you read them, love 'em when you write them._

_SamandMax0569 - (opens his mouth, closes, opens, closes, opens, closes, then walks off to buy stupid pills to take)_

_Some Random Person: (lassos me back)_

_Where was I going? Hey, wait! X.A.N.A. can possess people! He can do anything!_

_Jeremie: Uh, no he can't. You're many return trips off._

_Kitty - (pouts) Lucky. Just wait until those days when you have to go to rehersal every single day._

_Mewberries - (pulls the fanfic back and watches Mewberries fall from her chair from leaning in; sniggers)_

_Yumi52IshiyamaQ - MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA--(is shot)_

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 6: To Lyoko / The Trap**

The next several minutes passed on pretty smoothly. Sissi was permitted to leave for the mall, while Ricky stayed behind with his cousin. Well, actually, at the time, Jim had taken him out for a walk around campus to keep an eye on him.

At that moment, a ring tone that sounded like the theme song to some cartoon called from the little boy's pocket. He pulled a red phone out of his pocket as Jim stared in awe. "For Pete's sake! Does everybody and their grandma have a cell phone these days?"

"Actually, I know a guy, back home, who's grandma has a cell phone," stated Ricky, taking the P.E. teacher's comment literally. He answered the call saying, "Hiya, Roki! Oh, he's in the library with some counselor lady... I don't know, really. She just seemed interested in him... Oh, you told her about that experiment with the baking soda and the vinegar? She is? Awesome! Call me when she gets back; I wanna join in! OK, will do. Bye-bye!"

He hung up, then said to Jim. "Hey, Jimbo, I wanna go in and check on my favorite cousin, OK?"

"Uh, OK," he said, a little taken aback--yet flattered--by the use of his old nickname. But, as he watched the little boy race into the building, his own phone rang. "Hello? Yes, Mr. Delmas sir. What's wrong? Reports of a flash what?" His eyes grew wide. "A _what_? Right, sir. I'll evacuate the building immediately."

* * *

Yumi and Odd watched as Jeremie accessed the Super Calculator and connected to Lyoko. "Aelita, are you there?" he asked. 

"Yes, Jeremie," she said. "I'm at the tower, but it's being guarded by two Blocks and a Krabe."

"Don't worry," assured Jeremie. "Yumi and Odd are on the way over."

As the two made their way for the elevator, Odd asked, "So, what do you think X.A.N.A. is cooking up this time, Jeremie?"

In response, he clicked a few keys, opening a television program, and said, "I'll be watching the news to find that out."

* * *

_"It's off to the Forest Region, guys,"_ Jeremie said into the speaker program, as Yumi and Odd stepped into their scanners. _"I'll be seconding you a little west of where Aelita is."_ With that, the scanner doors closed. 

_"Transfer: Yumi. Transfer: Odd."_ Jeremie selected their transfer cards as their scanners whirred to life.

_"Scanner: Yumi. Scanner: Odd."_ Their scanners examined them from head to toe, and diagrams of their virtual forms, on the screen, began to fill with light and data.

_"Virtualization!"_

* * *

Aelita watched as two wire frames appeared in the distance, and then the images of Yumi and Odd printed themselves over them. The two landed and made their way towards her. 

"We're here, princess," said Odd as the two made it.

* * *

Ulrich had just about finished the third to the last problem on his homework, when... _"Boo!"_

The older cousin jumped in surprise, and then turned to glare at his giggle-happy little cousin. "Hee-hee-hee... you jumped," he finished in a rather matter-of-factly tone.

Ulrich just stared at him sorely. "You're really hilarious, supergenius."

"Cousin, guess what! Guess what!" he cried in a hyper, excited tone.

"You need restrictions on your sugar intake?" chuckled Ulrich.

The crazy, little supergenius gave him a shocked and offended look at the idea. "Never!" He then grinned and said, "Listen, listen, I told Roki about this cool chemistry trick involving baking soda and vinegar, and he told your girlfriend, and she's going to the store to get supplies to do the experiment! Wanna come to do the experiment with us, when it's time? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

A science experiment with two hyperactive kids (one of them superintellegent) and a girl he can't admit his feelings to? Don't count on it! "Um, listen," he said, forcing a smile, "as much as I'd love to do awesome chemistry experiments with my favorite little cousin and his friends..."

"...and, your girlfriend," Ricky reminded helpfully.

Before Ulrich could respond to this, Jim burst into the room. "We have a flash fire in the building. We need to evacuate!"

_A fire?_ thought Ulrich, as he got up, along with Ricky and Miss Clark. _Wait, first Yumi leaves the house, claiming to be getting stuff for a science experiment, and then this happens? This has X.A.N.A. written all over it._

"Come on, cousin!" said Ricky, breaking him out of his thoughts. "We should probably get out of here, so the firemen can do their job!"

* * *

As Ulrich looked around, as they were getting outside, they saw that parts of the fire had spread to buildings around them. 

Jim shuddered, and said, "This brings back memories of when I was in the volunteer fire department."

"You were in the volunteer fire department?" piped up Ricky from behind.

"I'd rather not talk about it," he hastily responded.

At that moment, part of the entrance roof caved in, blocking the door, causing all four of them to jump back. Unfortunately, about half of them were trapped inside, now. To be specific...

"Stern! Affeber!" Jim cried inside. "Are you OK?"

"We're fine, for now!" he called through the rubble, giving a back-pat to Ricky, who had just clinged to his older cousin for emotional support.

_Ricky: Ooh! The suspense is killing me!_

_You lived through this, you know what happens._

_Ricky: One, don't remind me. Two, it could literally kill me, if you know what I mean._

_IT; You're supposed to be _innocent

_Ricky: (giggles) Your face got all funny when you said that._

_On the other hand, your supposed to be an organtic supercomputer._

_Ricky: The area of a circle is pi times the radius squared._

_OK, that settles that... (blank face) I guess..._


	7. Can you keep a secret?

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!_

Hello and welcome to Celeberty Steel-Cage Monkey Boxing!

_Jeremie: You spend too much time in Timmy Turner's head._

_Oh, yeah? Well--WOAH! (accidentally sucks himself into Jimmy Neutron's hypercube)_

_Jeremie: Oh, well. (locates chapter 7 in DanMat6288's Documents bin) I guess I could respond to the reviews and put up the new chapter. (checks the review page to see who he's going to respond to)_

_Mewberries - Jeremie: Not nessessarily evil, just rather insane. (eyes hypercube) I worry about him, sometimes. Anyway, yes, Ulrich and his younger cousin do seem to be in quite a situation, but... well, read this next chapter._

_purplelover - Jeremie: Danny appreciates your enthusiasm. Here is the next chapter of his story._

_killerpurplekitten - Jeremie: Huh? (checks the last chapter) Um, I'm sorry, but could you explain what part of the chapter you're talking about?_

_Lyokogal7503 - Jeremie: All I have to say to you is what I told purplelover._

_SamandMax0569 - Jeremie: Well, I can't speak for Danny, all that much, but they don't seem that short. (shrug) Then again, I never really had an interest in fanfiction._

_Ricky: (pouts) I'm not short for my age. I'm pratically the same height as Hiroki, and he's a year older than me._

_Jeremie: Let it go, Ricky._

_Yumi52IshiyamaQ - Jeremie: Actually, I don't think you want to know the answer to your question._

_katfish xX - Jeremie: What was that--? (sweatdrop) Nevermind. I don't think I want to know._

_lyokobattler - Jeremie: Personally, I think it would be very immature to hold a grudge on anyone for not reviewing one chapter, but that's just me._

_Kitty - Jeremie: Oh, I know how annoying he can be, just as much as Ulrich does. Then again, you can't help but like the kid._

_Ulrich: (smirk) Oh, you mostly like him because he's--_

_Jeremie: Shh. You're going to spoil it for the readers!_

_Ulrich: Right, sorry._

_Jeremie: Besides, I like him for much more reasons than that. Anyway... (checks the review list) That everybody? Well, I guess it's time to post up the chapter._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 7: Can you keep a secret?**

As Ulrich and Ricky tried to find another way out, he noticed how afraid his little cousin was.

"Do you think we'll make it out OK?" he asked, his voice a little shaky.

Ulrich stared down at him, as he stared back with fearful, yet loving eyes. Feeling his heart warm up, he responded, "Positive." He took a deep breath and sighed, as he took an involuntary trip down memory lane.

* * *

**FLASHBACK - 6 YEARS:**

A 6-year-old boy, in an olive green T-shirt, peered at the tiny infant boy in his Aunt Mary's arms. "His name is Patrick," she told him. "He's your new cousin."

Staring curiously at the baby, little Ulrich commented, "Huh. I kind of like Ricky better, if you ask me."

* * *

**TIME JUMP - 2 YEARS:**

"...And then, the hungry caterpillar..." 8-year-old Ulrich stared in awe at the toddler on his lap, as he read from the book in the older cousin's hands.

* * *

**TIME JUMP - 2 YEARS:**

The 10-year-old boy burst into the family guest room, where his little cousin was staying for the night. "Ricky? I heard you scream, what's wrong?"

The little boy was hidden under his covers, shaking like crazy. "C-cousin... there's a m-m-monster under my bed..."

Ulrich went over to the bed and peered underneath. "All I see is this wrinkled up sweater," he said, pulling it out.

Ricky peered out at it, then down under the bed he was sleeping in. "Bu-but... I saw... I saw a monster."

Smiling, Ulrich sat down beside him. "Maybe it got scared off."

The little boy grinned and hugged him, saying, "Yeah, by you."

Smiling broader, he patted Ricky on the back and said, "You don't have to be afraid of monsters, Ricky. Just remember that for every monster there is out there, there's a force of good out there to protect you from it."

* * *

**RETURN TO THE PRESENT, NOW**

"Cousin? You OK?" The sound of Ricky's voice brought Ulrich back to reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said, shaking the feeling of flashback out of him. "We still need to find a way out and... _wait a minute_..." His attention turned to the entrance to the boiler room. Walking over to it, he went in and over to a door at the other side.

Following with great curiosity, Ricky watched Ulrich reach what appeared to be the door to a janitor's closet. That curiosity rose when Ulrich turned to him and said, "Can you keep a secret?"

"Sure," he said. "Nobody's found out about your vertigo or my 'B-WAS' secret from me, as of--_waaaait_, what's going on?"

"An attack from a virtual monster," Ulrich responded, opening the door to reveal a secret passage. "And, it's up to me and my friends to stop it."

* * *

"...and while we're continually going to Lyoko to help Aelita, Jeremie's been working on a program that might allow us to bring Aelita to our world," Ulrich explained. "That way, we can safely shut the Super Calculator down, getting rid of X.A.N.A. for good, while Aelita's safely on Earth." 

Ricky was entranced by the whole story as he rode with him down the sewer path. "A virtual universe, a power-mad supervillain plotting world domination? You guys are like superheroes, or something!"

Ulrich couldn't help but smile. They kind of were.

At this point, they had reached the end of the path, and Ulrich began to climb up the ladder to the manhole. Ricky followed, whimpering a little and not daring to look down. Ever since he was three, he's been terrified of heights.

As soon as he climbed out, he stared at the water-surrounded building before him in awe. "Wow... the old Renault car factory! This place was founded in..."

"Yeah, Jeremie?" Ulrich said over his mobile. "Oh, so it's on the news? I'm not surprised. Yeah, Ricky's here... Yes, Jeremie. I'm bringing him to the factory." The voice on the other end suddenly grew loud enough for someone standing a foot or two away could hear it. "I know, I know! But, what else was I supposed do do? I couldn't just leave him there; what if he died before we could deactivate the tower? You know that going back in time won't bring a victim back to life... Just relax, Einstein. He can keep a secret up to the return trip, and then he won't remember anything anyway... Alight, I'm bringing him in... OK, later." With that, he hung up.

"...and, the factory's been abandoned ever since," concluded Ricky. "...well, until the guy who made this computer... whoever that was."

Ulrich stuffed away his phone. "Yeah, like we'll ever find _that_ out. Come on," he motioned him towards the factory.

Ricky started to follow, but the cartoon theme ring tone went off again. "That's mine," he said, giving the 'one moment' signal and pulling his phone out. "Greetings, Earthling... oh, hi, Exchange Mommy... I'm fine. Cousin got me to safety... oh, uh, I... can't really tell where we are right now... Cousin's off getting food for us... Yeah, we're doing fine..."

It sounded like Ricky was taking care of things there, so Ulrich went over to the factory to wait for Ricky just above the elevator.

"He was with this counselor lady... Yeah, she came. Were you expecting her?" Ricky's face suddenly went into a look of bewilderment. "Wait, _my_ word provoked her into coming? Hiding something? _I_ implied that _my_ cousin was _hiding_ something?" He forced a chuckle. "Gee, well...oh, Cousin's back with the food, andIthinkI'mwastingminutesbye!" He hung up, took a deep breath, and sighed. _What have I done?_

_Jeremie: (after reading the chapter he just put up) So... this is the point where Ricky finds out the not-so-pleasent truth about the counselor._

_(pokes head out of hypercube, having finally gotten out) What did I miss?_

_Jeremie: A whole lot. I had to respond to your reviews and post up your story for you._

_(pulling self out) Really? Great! Hope they enjoyed this chapter._

_Jeremie: Well, they've enjoyed the rest of the story so far._


	8. I don't want to forget Part 1

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!!!_

And, welcome back to the Wonderful World of Danny! (Tinkle Bell (not Tinker Bell) flies by and poofs the screen)

_SamandMax0569 - Shh... Ricky doesn't know I put that in his profile._

_Yumi52IshiyamaQ - Trustworthy... trustworthy... hmmm..._

_katfish xX - (breathes like Darth Vader)_

_Jeremie: (rolls his eyes) Get a life!_

_HYPOCRITE!_

_Jeremie: Hey, I have a life!_

_Yeah, in front of the computer._

_Jeremie: Same to you!_

_lyokobattler - Cliffhangers. You can't live with them, you can't--aw, you get the idea._

_purplelover - Hey, Jimmy leaves his inventions lying around._

_Jimmy Neutron: (offscreen) That's a flatout lie! You mess around with my inventions, and then _you_ leave them lying around!_

_killerpurplekitten - That's all I need._

_Mewberries - Just read and see for yourself._

_nestrama mind of steel - Nice to recieve a new reader._

_Kitty - Again? And again? Well, OK then._

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 8: I don't want to forget - Part 1**

As the elevator made its way down Ulrich glanced at his cousin and he looked back. Although, he couldn't help but notice an awkward tone in Ricky's expression. "You OK?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine."

Ulrich looked a little unconvinced. Then again, Ricky never really was that good of an actor.

* * *

One of the Blocks had been taken out a minute or so ago. Aelita backed up from a duel between Yumi and the second Block, which consisted of Yumi shielding herself from the monster's hits with her fan. However, she didn't notice a Krabe charging up from behind her. 

"LOOK OUT!" Fortunately, Odd did. He pushed her aside just in the nick of time. "Careful next time, OK, Princess?" he said with a smile. She returned the smile just before a hit landed on Odd's back.

* * *

Jeremie checked the damage inflicted by the Krabe. His LP level was decreasing rapidly. "Your loosing too many life points, Odd!" 

As if on cue, he heard the hiss of the lab doors opening. "We're here, Jeremie," said Ulrich, stepping out. Ricky also stepped out. He stared all around him, in complete awe at his surroundings. "How are things on Lyoko?" Hearing the mention of the strange, fantastic virtual world Ulrich had told him about before, Ricky tuned his sensitive hearing on the two older boys, but didn't stop looking all around him.

"Not too good," he said. "There's still a Krabe and a Block left, and Odd's life points are dangerously low." Jeremie glanced in Ricky's direction, figured he wasn't listening, and said softly to Ulrich. "I still don't think it's a good idea having him around."

"Relax, Einstein, it's like I told you before," Ulrich responded, equally softly. "All we have to do is keep him here, and when you launch the jump back in time, our memories are preserved, while his isn't."

It was like a record needle had scratched from a sudden stop of a record player in his brain. A jump back in time? He wouldn't remember? Ricky was a little shocked at the idea. _No, I want to remember... I don't want to forget..._

Jeremie contemplated this, and then slowly nodded. "Fine. Get to the Scanner Room, Ulrich. I'll start up the process."

With a nod, Ulrich speedily went to the elevator. Before stepping in, however, he turned to his little cousin and said, "Ricky, I need you to promise me you'll stay in this lab, until this whole thing is over, OK?" Ricky paused for a moment, and then he nodded. "Good, 'cause someone's gonna have to keep on eye on the reincarnation of Einstein," he added with a chuckle.

Ricky giggled along with him.

* * *

"Over here, blockhead!" The Block turned around and faced its challenger. "LASER ARROWS!" It was too late to retaliate; two arrows stuck its eye. Two seconds later, it exploded and disintegrated. 

Odd raised his paws into the air in celebration. "Oh, yeah! I'm bad! I kick virtual butt!"

_"ODD! BEHIND YOU!"_

Before Odd could respond to Jeremie's panicked cry, the Krabe had smashed its leg into a nearby, leaning tree. It toppled over, flattening Odd.

* * *

It felt like he'd been crushed into a living piece of paper! The next thing Odd saw was a blinding flash of light, and then he was suddenly clamoring out of the scanner, gasping for breath. Next moment, he was face first down on the Scanner Room floor.

* * *

A moment after Odd vanished, Ulrich landed a foot or two away from the spot he'd been killed. Instinctively, he pulled his saber out and blocked several shots from the Krabe.

* * *

"Odd, are you there?" Jeremie asked into the Scanner Room speaker program. His only response was a soft moan. Tapping into the security system, he selected the desired camera and focused in on Odd's scanner. There he was, spread out and belly-down on the floor. 

"Odd!" Jeremie hopped from the computer and turned to Ricky. "Odd's not doing too well, so I'm going down to get him. Keep an eye on things on Lyoko, while I'm gone, and, whatever you do, _don't mess with anything_. Got that?"

Ricky stared at the now vacant computer. His cousin said their memories would be preserved. _Is there something set on the Super Calculator that keeps their memories intact? I wonder..._

"Ricky, did you hear me?"

"Oh, right," he said, snapping out of his thought. He folded his hands behind his back and smiled. "Don't mess with anything. OK."

Jeremie stared at him, as if wondering if he could trust him. Finally, he just gave in and stepped into the elevator, going down. He never saw that the little genius had his fingers crossed behind his back.

* * *

"SUPER SPRINT!" The Krabe suddenly found itself surrounded by a yellow ribbon of light.

* * *

"Are you OK?" asked Jeremie, rushing over to Odd's side. 

He moaned and said rather weakly, "Now I know what a piece of paper in a heavy textbook feels like."

* * *

While the Krabe was distracted, Yumi jumped up on the tree that had killed Odd and used one of the branches as a springboard. "HIYA!" With a strong flick of her wrist, she sent her fan flying into the Krabe's back. This was the second bit of damage the Krabe took, and the remainder of its life points has been taken from him. After a small explosion, the monster's legs fell to the ground, and then vanished.

* * *

Jeremie re-entered the lab with Odd leaning against his shoulder. Odd took one good look at who was hanging at the side of the computer chair. "Ricky?" 

"Long story," said Jeremie, who let Odd lie down on the floor with his back against the wall. "How are Ulrich and Yumi doing?"

"The last of your arch nemesis's evil minions are taken care of," he said, hopping down to the ground.

Jeremie just chuckled and sat down. Placing the earpiece on, he said, "You guys are alright in there?"

* * *

"Better than alright," responded Ulrich. He glanced over at Aelita making her way for the tower.

* * *

The little, virtual girl walked across the platform in a same-old, same-old routine. As she approached the center, the rings she stepped on lit up and beeped. When she reached the center, she concentrated on the top of the tower and rose up.

* * *

Back at Kadic Academy, the firemen were still struggling to keep the fire under control. "Geez, what's feeding this thing?" asked Jerald, one of the men. 

Mrs. Clark looked on with concern. "Oh, dear. I hope Ulrich and his little cousin made it out OK."

* * *

Just as Aelita stepped onto the upper platform, the translucent interface appeared at the center. She approached it and placed her hand on the screen. "**AELITA**" typed itself across the screen, welcoming her to the Lyoko database. Her name flashed twice, and then was replaced by the word, "**CODE**". 

"**L**…  
**Y**…  
**O**…  
**K**…  
**O**"

* * *

After awhile, the fire seemed to be dying down, under the firemen's efforts. It was almost as if whatever was feeding the fire had been killed off.

* * *

"Tower deactivated," said Aelita, as the bright screens around her fell into the data stream below. A second later, a bright burst of light shot its way up the tower.

* * *

Jeremie struck the enter key, having entered the return trip coordinates. He watched a sketch of the Earth, on the screen, rotate on a green background as he shouted his famous catchphrase, "Return to the past, _now_." 

_Ooh... Did you see that? Ricky doesn't seem to trustworthy in this chapter. (holds up a pizza box eagerly awaiting the flying pizza to... well, fly in his direction)_


	9. I don't want to forget Part 2

_DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!!!_

I love you all! (hugs everyone and recieves a few slaps; cringes, backs off) Ahem, anyway, here it is...

_SamandMax0569 - We all have a halo and horns. It's what makes us human._

_purplelover - Is this soon enough?_

_katfish xX - Let's all go skip in the flowers! YAY! (the men in the white coats from the Asylum for Mental Cartoon Lovers find me) Eek! (Tinklebell poofs them away) Phew..._

_killerpurplekitten - (grabs her with a look of paranoia) WHO IS YOUR SOURCE, SPY?_

_Slinkman (from _Camp Lazlo_): (hits me with the Full Moon frying pan) Sorry, that was for your own good._

_Er, thanks. _

_IAmTheBos - So... I'm _not_ fired?_

_Mewberries - Now, what makes you say that? (twitch)_

_Yumi52IshiyamaQ - (catches pizza and starts eating it contentedly)_

_Kitty - Why, yes I do. One, it gives you all plenty of time to review, two, it helps remind me how much you guys love the story, three, it keeps the story from ending too soon, and last, but definately not least... D I love torturing you. (gets hit by flying vegitables from all of you, and then the Ware-Rabbit comes in and eats me, so the chapter automatically starts without me)_

**My Cousin, Ricky**

**Chapter 9: I don't want to forget - Part 2**

The next thing Ulrich knew, he was sitting in math class. A quick look at the calendar revealed that the return trip had dumped them a few days back. As the teacher went on with her lecture, he turned to Jeremie and whispered, "_So, why did you set the coordinates back to here?_"

"_I'm doing you a favor, Ulrich,_" he whispered in response. "_If I never tried going to Lyoko, then there's no deal between you and Sissi._"

"_Oh_," he said, pausing to take this in. "_Well, um, thanks, I guess..._"

"Ulrich! Repeat what I just said!" Unfortunately for him, the teacher noticed that he wasn't listening.

Because of this, Ulrich was completely taken aback. "I... uh..."

Her eyes turned to the boy next to him. "Odd? Go on, help him." To most of the class' utter amusement, Odd had been caught doing his usual classroom past time: sleeping.

* * *

The next day went as usual, minus the gang's trouble due to their extended absences and Ulrich's deal with Sissi. By the end of the day, Ricky's knock came at the door, right on cue. 

"Who's there?" asked Ulrich. They'd planned to play most of the pre-return-trip encounter over again, to prevent any suspicion due to the fact that they've already met the kid.

_"Orange!"_ said Ricky from outside.

"Orange who?" asked Odd.

_"Orange ya' glad I came all the way from the U.S. to see you?"_

Ulrich staged a rather impressive sigh and went to the door. "I almost forgot he was coming."

As soon as he opened the door, the grinning 7-year-old boy greeted, "Hello, Cousin!"

_"Cousin?"_ asked a couple of voices behind Ulrich.

"Well, 'Cousin', I believe a few introductions are in order," said Odd, copying himself from the last time.

With that, Ulrich went into the explanation on who Ricky was and why he was there. There were a few things different in what exact words he said, but nothing really noticeable.

"But, I thought Mr. Delmas wasn't going to open a foreign exchange program with America until _next_ year."

"Oh, I'm not going to Kadic, Jerry." Ricky immediately froze, having caught his slip of tongue only too late. "You are Jerry, right? Cousin told me about you guys."

Ulrich gave him a suspicious look. "Interesting that you have Jeremie's nickname down already. You usually wait until their real name is mentioned, with them in the room, beforehand."

The little boy glanced around, a little nervous. "Oh, I, uh, met Jerry in a dream. Yeah, that's it."

Jeremie was also getting a little suspicious. "You sure that's it?" he asked. "You didn't do anything you weren't supposed to, right?"

"I said I wouldn't mess with anything!" he blurted out. Clasping a hand over his mouth, he realized he'd _definitely_ said too much, now.

Jeremie turned to the older cousin and said, "Ulrich, I think your genius cousin knows a little _too_ much."

"What are you talking about? I don't even know what a X.A.N.A. is, and--aw, dip it in tarter sauce and call it the catch of the day!" the little boy groaned, stomping his foot on the ground. "Why do I even bother anymore?"

Jeremie, Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd glanced at each other in mild worry. Ricky somehow remembered everything that should've been erased from his memory by the return trip. Jeremie had a strong hunch how. "Didn't mess with anything, huh?" he queried with an interrogating voice.

The small child--now feeling even smaller--could feel their stares burning through him. They were mad at him, and that hurt. He sat down, curled up in a ball, and stared at his feet. "OK, I admit it. While you were gone, I--sniff--I programmed myself into the Super Calculator." It was now apparent that he was starting to cry a little.

"But... why?" asked Odd, looking at his best friend's cousin with concern, when he saw he was crying.

"Because I don't want to forget," he softly cried. "I want to remember the great things my cousin does not only for me, but for the whole world. And, Cousin...?" He stared awkwardly up at him, and he nodded him on. "I... have a confession to make...sigh I'm the reason that counselor lady's been on your case?"

"_What?_" he asked softly.

He threw his hands up a bit. "I don't know... maybe, deep, deep down, I knew you had some big secret like Lyoko, and my exchange mommy and daddy overheard me talking about it, and they can get a little overprotective."

"Well, now that we have _that_ figured out, that might help us in preventing Ulrich from being monitored by Miss Clark," said Jeremie, typing something into his laptop.

Ricky shrugged. "Can't I just _not_ say anything that will make anyone suspicious of Cousin?"

Jeremie shook his head. "I'm sorry, Ricky, but you won't be remembering not to say anything."

The little boy shot up like a rocket. "_What?_"

"Next time X.A.N.A. attacks, I'm erasing your information from the Super Calculator, and then setting the return trip coordinates to the point I had them set last, so that we can finally erase your memory," he explained.

"B-bu-but..." he stammered. "PLEASE!" He begged, hands folded and down on his knees. "I DON'T WANT TO FORGET! AFTER ALL, HOW ELSE IS ULRICH GOING TO KEEP FROM BEING WATCHED BY THAT COUNSELOR LADY?"

"We'll think of something," said Jeremie, finishing up whatever he was doing on the computer.

"But--but..."

"But nothing," Jeremie scolded him. With that, he pressed the enter key on his computer. "_Come on... come on..._" he murmured, watching data flash across the screen. Moments later, the results of what he was doing came back negative. He groaned, "I'll never get this darn program to work!"

Ricky leaned over and looked at his laptop. "Hey, you working on that materialization program? Wow, cool!" He frowned and looked at the data. "But, are you sure it's enough to just de-fragment the inertial matrix? What if you tried..." With that, he leaned over further and began typing a long string of code in over the data. Leaning back, he said, "Try it, Jerry."

Jeremie stared curiously at Ricky, then at the laptop, and pressed the enter key. For a minute or so, the computer went over the data. "Nope, still comes up negative. No material--wait a minute!" He scanned over the results. "I don't believe it! I've never been this close before!" He stared at the younger genius before him in awe. "Ricky, what you've done is fantastic!"

Ricky grinned. "Two geniuses are better than one."

Jeremie cleared his throat, trying to look indifferent. "Ahem, um, I suppose he could stay as an honorary member of our group... as long as it's OK with Ulrich, of course." Ricky grinned hopefully up at his big cousin.

Ulrich thought for a moment. "Well... I don't know..."

Ricky stared up at him and said, "Cousin, whenever I was younger, someone very close to me told me that, for every monster out there, there's a force of good out there to protect me. Well, X.A.N.A. is a big, bad, virtual monster. And, you and your friends are the force of good protecting me from him."

Ulrich stared deep into the little boy's blue eyes. He could tell that he really felt strongly about this... what else could he do? "OK," he said, finally.

Those blue eyes lit up with joy, and the little boy they were attached to suddenly flung himself around Ulrich's waist in a big bear hug.

"And, best of all," he said with a grin, "while were keeping X.A.N.A. from taking over the world, Roki and I can be there to make sure you and your girlfriend really get together!"

Ulrich and Yumi exchanged startled glances. Oh, boy! This was going to be a _looong_ exchange program.

**CODE  
END...**

_Well, there it is... the end... I loved you all... and I hope you all loved this story... (starts getting all teary eyed)_

_625: Oh, great. Here come the waterworks. (all characters who ever appear in my chapter prologues and epologues open umbrellas)_


End file.
